athletics218_cs.jpg Event on 8/16/03 in Oakland. Oakland A's pitcher Chad Bradford (53). The A's hung onto a lead and beat the Toronto Bluejays 6-4 at the Network Associates Coliseum CHRIS STEWART / The Chronicle MANDATORY CREDIT FOR PHOTOG AND SF CHRONICLE/ -MAGS OUT

Photo: CHRIS STEWART

athletics218_cs.jpg Event on 8/16/03 in Oakland. Oakland A's...

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Giant�s fans celebrate A.J. Pierzynski foul ball catch behind home plate in the second game of the final three of the season, Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Francisco Giants in Los Angeles. By Lance Iversen/San Francisco Chronicle MANDATORY CREDIT PHOTOG AND SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE.

Major-league players are applauding baseball's new steroid policy, some of them with great sincerity. Behind the scenes, however, there is a great sense of relief. Amphetamines remain fair game.

Baseball might be a little kid's game, but at the highest level, it is played by tough, jaded adults. They're looking for an edge, just as actors are with plastic surgery, egomaniacs with a Botox needle, a businessman on his 19th cup of coffee or someone merely sneaking out for a smoke. To label athletes "cheaters" is blatant hypocrisy. They merely reflect a society in which enhanced performance is sought at all costs.

Amphetamines are not a byproduct of the steroid generation; they go back to the 1960s, and earlier, in professional sports and especially baseball. As you recall a golden era that began with the Dodgers and Giants moving west, know for certain that some of your favorite superstars used "speed" to gain an edge. We're not talking rumors here, but 100 percent fact.

If you're surprised baseball didn't include amphetamines on its list of banned substances in the new drug-testing agreement this week, don't be. The players wouldn't allow it, no matter what warnings come down from Congress. These are men accustomed to bending the rules a little, whether it's a corked bat, a doctored baseball, a steroid injection, a shot of cortisone (which falls under the steroid classification) or a surge of alertness from amphetamine pills. It's not cool, it's not romantic, it's not legal, it's not advisable for people in any walk of life, but it's reality in baseball.

"I think it's reasonable to assume," one industry source said this week, "that if you banned amphetamines, the level of major-league play would fall significantly. Even if it didn't, you'd have players believing that it would, having lost a time-honored crutch and a source of great confidence."

For all of the benefits gained by steroids, from strength to bat speed to increased aggressiveness, the flip side can bring deteriorating health and counterproductive mood swings. Many have tried steroids, only to be run out of sports by the side effects. Amphetamines are no bargain, health-wise, but the formula is much simpler: Stay alert, perform better. Say it's around midnight near the end of an exhausting road trip. If you're looking for a key hit against someone throwing 100 mph gas, there's no comparison between a tired, drowsy ballplayer and a guy so jacked-up, mentally, he steps to the plate with a wide-eyed vengeance.

This is a side of baseball that no one wants to acknowledge, but it's there. Why should the fans care? It's not their problem. Don't tell 'em how, just provide the best possible entertainment. This may have been an encouraging week for baseball's war on steroids, but hundreds of edge-seeking players scored a victory, as well.

No class whatsoever

One of those now-it-can-be-told stories the White Sox, A.J. Pierzynski's new employer, surely haven't heard: During a Giants exhibition game last spring, Pierzynski took a shot to his, shall we say, private parts. Trainer Stan Conte rushed to the scene, placed his hands on Pierzynski's shoulders in a reassuring way, and asked how it felt. "Like this," said Pierzynski, viciously delivering a knee to Conte's groin. It was a real test of professionalism for the enraged Conte, who vowed to ignore Pierzynski for the rest of the season until Conte realized how that would look. The incident went unreported because all of the beat writers happened to be doing in-game interviews in the clubhouse, but it was corroborated by a half-dozen eyewitnesses who could hardly believe their eyes. Said one source, as reliable as they come: "There is absolutely no doubt that it happened." ... Leave it to Randy Moss to turn Terrell Owens into the sophisticated prince of end-zone celebrations ... Karl Malone must be thinking of retiring from basketball. There's no other reason he'd avoid signing with San Antonio and gaining a real shot at his first NBA title ... Lamenting the final play of Seattle's loss to St. Louis, quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said he'd "like to have it back." Not at all. He threw his pass low, where it couldn't be intercepted, and accurately. Bobby Engram dropped it, as well as the season, and should be considering a new line of work.

A little fine-tuning for the Giants: Get a young, speedy outfielder who can play game-saving defense in the late innings ... With a number of intriguing options in right-handed relief (Juan Cruz, Octavio Dotel, Jairo Garcia, Huston Street, Keiichi Yabu), it's odd the A's re-signed Chad Bradford. We've seen more than enough of that tired submarine gimmick ... Randy Johnson did some nice damage control in the wake of his shouting match with a New York TV crew, chatting up David Letterman and playing street ball with Regis Philbin. That won't be the last of his media-related problems, though. He said so himself during the outburst, telling that cameraman to back off "or you'll see what I'm like." Scary ... The Mets have entered such an exciting new realm of relevance and gate appeal, they shouldn't have the slightest concern about Sammy Sosa. With Pedro Martinez and Carlos Beltran aboard (and Carlos Delgado being sought), the scene far outweighs Sosa's pride and pettiness. Sosa is also extremely close to Omar Minaya, the general manager having such a huge impact. The Mets should trade for him immediately ... Meanwhile, the Yankees had a shot at their dream player in Beltran, a young and vibrant center fielder in the fine New York tradition, but ran out of money (due to fears over the luxury tax) after signing Jaret Wright and Carl Pavano. Big mistake .. . Yes, it's the Los Angeles Angels. Say it with us in Spanish: The Angels Angels. Playing some good-good ball-ball ... And with that, we say bye-bye for more vacation. The 3-Dot will return in tandem with the pitchers and catchers.